Leaving (Part 2)

"Please instruct me, Uncle Hizashi!"

Before his words had even faded, the young man used a Body Flicker Technique and arrived in the middle of the field.

"Good lad, not bad at all!" Hizashi praised sincerely.

Though the speed of this Body Flicker Technique was not particularly fast in Hizashi and Hiashi's eyes, compared with genin of the same level, it was far ahead.

It was almost comparable to a chunin's.

"Take this!" Hizashi could no longer wait. With a step and a burst forward, he launched his attack.

The Hyuga Clan was famous for its taijutsu, so naturally Hiashi and the others were testing Yizhe primarily through taijutsu.

Of course, the Hyuga Clan did not lack ninjutsu. It was simply that they incorporated nearly all their ninjutsu into taijutsu. Although many of their secret techniques were technically taijutsu, Ninja Body Technique was a more fitting term for them.

Considering Yizhe's age and training, Hizashi did not use his full strength, exerting only half his power. Nor did he immediately use any killing moves. Instead, he closed in and exchanged blows with basic Gentle Fist.

Even though Hizashi was not fighting at full strength, after several dozen exchanges, Yizhe increasingly felt himself running out of steam.

This kid is good! Both Hizashi brothers were very satisfied with Yizhe's performance.

Although Yizhe was being forced back step by step, his determination to hold on was already exceedingly rare in the brothers' eyes.

At his age, there were only a handful of people who could achieve this much.

No! If this continues, I probably won't be able to withstand more than a few moves! Feeling his hands grow heavier and his arms go numb, Yizhe sensed trouble.

First, I need to get out of this disadvantageous situation!

With that thought, Yizhe secretly gathered strength in his legs. The instant Hizashi threw a punch, he raised a guard, borrowed the force of Hizashi's strike, and pushed off the ground, leaping more than three meters away.

"Hm?" Hizashi, who had just thrown a punch, was startled.

He had felt that the force of his punch had not landed completely. By the time he came to his senses, Yizhe had already escaped the range of his fists.

"Kid, do you think you can escape just like that?" Hizashi asked with a smile as he looked at the boy several meters away.

Still, deep down, he admired the method Yizhe had used to break away just now.

Yizhe ignored him. The moment he landed, he rapidly retreated, forming hand seals with both hands.

"Too slow, kid!" Before the words were finished, a familiar figure had already rushed in front of Yizhe.

Pff—

Hizashi's palm struck Yizhe, who was still forming hand seals.

The struck figure turned into a stream of water and splashed onto the ground.

Yet there was no surprise on Hizashi's face, as though he had known all along that this Water Clone Technique was not Yizhe's real body.

It turned out that the moment Yizhe had used Hizashi's punch to break away and land, he had created a Water Clone Technique on the ground to draw Hizashi's attention while he silently leaped into the air.

Just as Hizashi struck the Water Clone Technique, Yizhe high in the air had already completed another set of hand seals. He gathered chakra in his mouth, puffed out his cheeks, and spat fiercely at Hizashi below.

"Water Release: Water Wave!"

A surging stream of water burst from his mouth. Yizhe used the recoil from the flow to pull away from Hizashi once more.

"Hmph! Naive! Eight Trigrams Air Palm!"

Hizashi snorted and swung a palm upward over his head, splitting the water wave in two from afar. Water sprayed everywhere and flowed across the ground.

Judging from the situation, he had already noticed Yizhe above him.

"You've already learned Water Release? You really are surprising! Do you have any other tricks?" Hizashi slowly turned around and smiled at Yizhe, who had landed not far behind him.

"Water Release: Water Formation Wall!"

The instant Yizhe landed, he had already completed another set of hand seals. He pressed one hand into the streams of water formed by the Water Wave that Hizashi had scattered.

From the beginning, he had known it was impossible to sneak attack Hizashi from the air. After all, the Byakugan was no joke.

His goal was to further widen the distance between himself and Hizashi and create the conditions to cast his next ninjutsu.

"Kid, don't tell me you think..."

"What?!" Hizashi was greatly startled.

A blue wall of water rose from the streams around him, like a massive blue bowl turned upside down over Hizashi.

Only then did Hizashi understand that Yizhe had not used this ninjutsu to protect himself, but to trap him!

It seemed that with only half his strength, it would be difficult to break through this Water Formation Wall. With that thought, Hizashi was in no hurry to get out. Instead, he remained quietly inside, wanting to see what else Yizhe had up his sleeve.

A safe environment for casting ninjutsu is ready! Now it's my turn! Yizhe's lips curled upward.

"Water Release: Water Shark Bullet!"

His fingers flew, and Yizhe completed another set of hand seals. A blue shark over three meters long emerged from the blue water wall, opened its jaws wide, and lunged at Hizashi.

"Kid, this alone won't work!" Hizashi said softly, casually shattering the blue shark with an Eight Trigrams Air Palm.

"Is that so, Uncle Hizashi?" Before the words were finished, Yizhe had already rushed to the edge of the water wall.

"Water Release: Water Prison Technique!"

While Hizashi shattered the shark, Yizhe had already completed the hand seals for Water Prison Technique and thrust one hand into the water wall.

"What?!" "What?!"

Hiashi, watching from the side, and Hizashi in the field were both deeply shocked. They were astonished by the boy's hand seal speed and even more astonished by his combat awareness.

The water wall that had been "protecting" Hizashi suddenly shrank, transforming into a water sphere roughly two meters in diameter and trapping the unprepared Hizashi inside.

"Uncle Hizashi, you've lost this time!" Yizhe said with a smile to Hizashi inside the Water Prison Technique.

"Kid, why didn't you directly use Water Prison Technique instead when you cast Water Formation Wall?" Rather than admitting defeat, Hizashi asked with a curious expression.

"The casting range of Water Prison Technique is too close. I wasn't confident that I could complete the hand seals before you counterattacked, Uncle!" Yizhe shook his head.

"So your purpose in casting Water Formation Wall was to create a safe and suitable environment to use Water Prison Technique?" Hizashi was no fool and immediately understood the key point.

"Then... Water Shark Bullet was also meant to draw my attention and cover your approach, wasn't it?" Hizashi calmly deduced the details of the battle.

"Uncle Hizashi, it's time to admit defeat, isn't it?" Yizhe's expression hardened as he urged him.

After casting several ninjutsu in succession, he had little chakra left. Hizashi's calm expression instead made Yizhe feel uneasy.

Things probably aren't that simple! A bad feeling rose within him.

"Kid, let me teach you another lesson!"

"No matter how advantageous your position is, never underestimate any jounin-level expert! Even if he has already lost most of his strength!" Hizashi roared.

In an instant, the young man felt a powerful aura rising within the Water Prison Technique.

"Gentle Fist: One-Strike Body!"

A massive amount of chakra erupted from the acupuncture points across Hizashi's body in an instant. It was as though an explosive tag had been thrown into the Water Prison Technique, and the blue water sphere suddenly expanded to twice its size.

Bang—

The water sphere could no longer hold. With a bang, it exploded. The enormous impact sent Yizhe flying.

"Gentle Fist: Eight Trigrams Sixty-Four Palms!"

"Damn it!" Yizhe, who had just climbed to his feet, discovered that he was already inside Hizashi's Eight Trigrams Field and could not escape.

I have to go for it! Yizhe clenched his teeth and assumed an opening stance.

"Gentle Fist: Eight Trigrams Palms Revolving Heaven!"

Before the words had faded, a rotating blue sphere of light formed within Hizashi's Eight Trigrams Field. Unable to withdraw his attack in time, Hizashi struck it head-on.

Bang—

A tremendous rotating force hurled Hizashi away, smashing him through the courtyard wall.

"Cough, cough, cough!"

"Kid, let's go again! Keep fighting!" A dust-covered figure emerged from the rubble, brimming with excitement.

"Enough!"

"Big brother..."

"I said enough!"

Hiashi glared fiercely at Hizashi, his expression utterly resolute. Hizashi had no choice but to yield.

"Yizhe's performance has already been outstanding! With this Revolving Heaven alone, he has sufficient ability to protect himself. As long as he does not deliberately provoke jounin-level opponents, he should have no problems traveling outside. Even if he encounters a chunin, he may have a chance of defeating one!" Hiashi explained.

Whew—

Hearing the clan head's approval, Yizhe finally let out a breath of relief. His chakra was nearly exhausted. If they continued fighting, he would not be able to hold on for much longer.

"What a letdown! I was just getting into it!" Stopped by Hiashi, Hizashi muttered unwillingly to the side.

"Lord Hiashi, regarding the village..."

"As for the village, I'll report it for you when I return. Just leave without worry!"

Hiashi's promise dispelled Yizhe's concerns. He did not want to become a rogue ninja and be hunted by the village merely because he left to train.

After their exchange, Hizashi nagged Yizhe for quite some time. Knowing that he was leaving to train, Hizashi was quite reluctant, but there was nothing he could do.

Early the next morning, while the sky was still dim, Yizhe packed his belongings and quietly left the village, leaving behind the place that had once made him feel warmth, and now made his heart ache.